Turfgrass biomass production and nutrient balance of an urban park irrigated with reclaimed water

Abstract

The increasing demand for water resources in arid and semiarid countries has stimulated the use of non-conventional water resources such as reclaimed water. Consequently, turfgrass irrigation with reclaimed water has become a regular practice in these regions. The main goal of this research was to assess the effects of reclaimed water (RW) irrigation in Madrid urban parks by studying changes in grass nutrient balance and its biomass production. Irrigation with reclaimed water led to a grass biomass increase, mainly due to the high proportion of nutrients received through the irrigation water. The main nutrient input in RW irrigation were of Cl, S, K and Na. RW also contributed to a significant increase in nutrient removal by grass. Thus, all this information generated should be taken into account by park managers in order to fulfill the grass aesthetic value and its nutritional requirements in those urban parks irrigated with RW.

Keywords: Irrigation; Nutrient balance; Reclaimed water; Turfgrass; Urban park.